Born in Canada, Boosey was a well-known basketball player in Detroit. He played for many years with various teams, most notably the YMCA and the Rayls, before joining the Red Arrows and Pulaski Post. At the age of 40, he was with Pulaski Post when the team was a member of the ABL. Boosey was also an avid ping pong and handball player, and had a pre-basketball-game ritual of eating chili prior to tip off.

In 1941, Boosey was playing handball in a singles tournament at a Detroit YMCA when he fell over and died of a massive heart attack.

He was married to Marietta Ames in 1907 and they had a son and a daughter.